Don’t worry about the bizarre opening moments, and settle back to watch another of nature’s great events – thousands of starlings scorching across the sky as they return to their roosts from foraging.

The BBC has a nice article on the phenomenon from this time last year.

I must admit to having developed a soft spot for them over the time I’ve been living here; at first they infuriated me, as they drove all the smaller birds away from our window feeders, but I then learned that they – like sparrows – were suffering huge declines in numbers. It’s also been a delight to watch the juveniles develop from squawking balls of brown fluff into sleek adults, with their purple and green iridescence.